Friday, May 27, 2011

One of the best things I ever did as a woman is start tracking my fertility. What does that mean exactly? Well for one it is keeping track of when your period happens, but it can be sooo much more than that. If you are trying to conceive, there are tons of things you could be looking for to improve your chances. Also, tracking can help you to realize if something is wrong with your menstrual cycle.

I've found the best online tracker for me is fertilityfriend.com. I track pretty much everything, and it keeps it all in one neat place for me. I have the VIP version, as I need some of the more advanced stuff due to some infertility issues, but the basic is suitable for someone just trying to know more about how their body works. They also have courses for you to learn how to chart. Once you do it for a little bit, it becomes really simple. Honestly I was surprised by how much our body tells us, and how it tells us.

I really found it all empowering, and I hope you do too.

On a side note, if anyone would like me to send them an email invite for the website, it would be helpful. Each invite accepted gets me a few days of vip service added on to my account, and for each person who purchases the vip I get 30 days, as do you. :-)

Good trip. First week officially under the new policy, and they still took overage. It seemed they were waiting on some to see if the order total would not be in the negative, so I guess that is how my store interprets it. One of the days when I have a chance, I'll have to ask them specifics on the overage. I plan to visit another Publix later that supposedly sells Pepsi Throwback because there is some free Pepsi just waiting for me. If I go, I'll come back and add it here.

*Edit*
So I made it to the other Publix yesterday and was only able to get 2 Pepsi Throwbacks, but here's the how that one matched up:
(2)Pepsi Throwback BOGO $4.99-(1)B1G1 Facebook Promotion (no longer available)

So recently my husband and I bought a share in a Community Supported Farm. A community supported farm is a farm that is basically run by people taking ownership in it. Some farms have you help with work, others have you provide monetary support. In return you get a share of the harvest.
So why did we do it?

It's truly a great way to get veggies. For $30 a week, we will get a big box of organic fruit and vegetables. Sure we will occasionally have to pick up other things at the store, but it will provide much of what we need and then some.

People in general need to eat more fruits and veggies. If you pay for something, you'll probably be inclined to find a way to eat it before it goes bad. Also, many people skip veggies and fruits at the store because they are too expensive, and organic is even more so.

It helps a local business. By buying from a local farmer, you are helping them to profit, which in turn leads to them spending and hiring. If you buy from the supermarket, sure the store will profit, but it also means that a person across the country is profiting too.

It helps the environment. When produce is shipped across the country (and world), it just means lots of gas is used, and also a lot of packaging. If it doesn't grow in your area at that time of year, chances are it came from somewhere else, and traveled a long way to get there.

Variety. We'll get a variety of produce each week, which means not just eating the same three veggies, and getting more of the rainbow of foods available. Here's a look at some of the things my farm will be giving us, not all at once of course.

I'm actually quite excited, but unfortunately we don't get our first box for a long time. We live in South Florida, and now is when a lot of crops go out of season. It's really just to hot for many plants to grow. But I've heard both i heart publix and Southern Savers discuss their memberships in similar programs, and they love them. I hope you will consider looking for one in your area!

For more info on Community Supported Farms, or to find one near you, check out local harvest.

Have a plan for your home. Where will you store outside furniture? Do you have shutters? Do you know how to install them? What about boats?

Make sure to keep up on tree and shrub maintenance. Dead branches can lead to serious damage.

72 hr kit! If you think you can run out to the store when a hurricane warning goes into effect, you are mistaken. Stores quickly run out of the essentials. Also be sure your 72 hour kit is portable, should you have to evacuate you will still need it. Not all shelters provide food, and stores can be out of it if trucks can't get to them.

Know your evacuation plan. Know which roads are evacuation routes (designaed evacuation routes generally mean that if there is a mandatory evacuation then traffic on those roads will only flow out of the area). Have an idea where you will go. Do not count on shelters, they are crowded and are meant for the people who truly have no place to go. If you have a relative you can go visit, do that. Other wise you'll need to make sure you know a way to book a hotel fast. Also when they say evacuate, you should ready to go the minute the evacuation order is issued.

Always keep your gas on the full end. When a hurricane watch is issued, people will go buy gas. This leads to long lines, high prices, and gas shortages. Save yourself the trouble and keep gas in the car, (and possibly a container at home).

Have cash on hand. Similar to gas, some people end up withdrawing all the money a bank has. You also can't be sure that you'll be able to use credit and debit cards as the machines depend on phone and internet lines, which could be damaged in a storm. That being said you don't need to keep all of your money as cash or large sums, just enough to be able to pay for gas during your evacuation and possibly more food, housing, etc.

Have a plan for your animals. Animals can't go in most shelters and shouldn't be left in the home to fend for themselves. Have a plan for either a kennel to hold them or to take them with you.

Have all your documents ready. Anything you might need to prove should be in it. In other words, birth certificates, deeds, insurance documents, vaccination records, financial records, pet records, even school records (during Katrina, many children left the area, but had trouble enrolling in school in a new area because the school had no idea what classes they were taking or had taken and their grades.)

Here is a post from the past which was from an event where our local emergency response team (they are the ones who decide to issue an evacuation )and several local people discussed things to do for disasters

I encourage you to plan now, so you are ready if a hurricane should threaten.

Tuesday, May 24, 2011

A lot of food we eat comes in plastic containers. Just think about it. Spreadable butter, margarines, sour cream, cream cheese, dips, yogurt, hummus, and even some cheeses like feta or cheese spreads. That's a lot of plastic. Here's some handy tips on what you can do with it.

Sorting and organizing. Many of these tubs are great for storing the pieces to a board game or keeping the puzzle pieces you just sorted seperate, or for storing all sorts of things like paper clips, beads, etc.

Use it for painting. We used them for the edging in portion of painting rooms, or you can use them for small painting projects, or for painting with the kids.

Make it into a piggy bank. Decorate, cut a slit in the top, and voila a fun way to save money.

Pet food storage. Great for traveling with pet, and you can also use them as a water bowl on the go. I also use a large container for storing pet food in my 72-hour kit.

Seed starters. These little containers are great for starting some seeds, just be sure to drill some holes in the bottom first.

Paint them and use them as gift baskets for various holidays. Great for giving to your kids friends with candy inside or some other yummy treat.

Use them in bathroom drawers to keep like things together and clean (like cotton balls).

Create a travel sewing, first aid, or other kit in them. They can fit easily in glove boxes, diaper bags, or under a seat.

Turn them into scoops. You can use them in the big bag of cat food or they can be lots of fun in a kiddy pool or sandbox (or even the beach, they'd be great for castles!)

Donate them. Lot's of schools, day cares, churches, etc. use them for arts and crafts projects.

Recycle them. Not all cities do, but a lot do recycle them.

That's just some of the many uses for them! If you have an idea for a use, please share below, and I will add it to the list.

And a word of warning, which you can follow or not, the type of plastic that these containers are made out is not meant to be heated, in fact microwaving them can leach chemicals from the plastic into the food. So while it may seem like a good idea to make them into your personal tupperware collection, it's really not that wise of an idea. Besides you can get plastic containers fairly cheap, and it's sooo much easier when you can see your leftovers in your container. ;-)

Friday, May 20, 2011

I made this recipe for Nutella Cheesecake Brownies the other day, and they were soooooo yummy.
The only thing I would change is for the cheesecake layer, cream the cream cheese and sugar first, then add the Nutella, then each of the eggs one at a time.

They were really simple to make, but oh so yummy. Definitely on my favorites list.

Trip was good, nothing exciting. I did however get a copy of the coupon policy, and as you can see so far they are still letting me do overage... *crosses fingers* that it remains true after the official start date.

As many of you know, Publix is rolling out it's new coupon policy. Check-out Michelle's post on it here.

Honestly, it's similar to what most people already have been dealing with. For some people it has changed their competitor's a little bit, but it's also forced stores to put who their competitors are in writing, which stops that variance from store-to-store, manager-to-manager, and cashier-to-cashier.

One thing it didn't make clear is overage. It almost seems that it is allowed now, but you'll have to ask your Publix. I heard from a cashier in my area who just got out of the meeting about the policy change that she was told by her manager that if the end balance is negative the drawer will open and the customer will receive money back. I was shocked becaused this was at a store that I hated going to because I had to fight them just to lower the coupon value to not get overage.

When I went to my store last week, they had their new competitor's poster up and it listed Save-a-lot, Target, Winn-Dixie, and Sweetbay. Definitely fair to me. They didn't hand me one of the new policies, but they didn't stop any overage, but like I said in my show-and-tell post there was that whole accident in the parking lot, so they might have been a little distracted.

So what are your thoughts on the policy? Any thing you are glad to see? Any new troubles at your store that you didn't have before? I'd love to hear your thoughts.

Wednesday, May 18, 2011

It may seem like it's unneccessary. Your area never floods, you aren't near water, etc., etc. But the reality is, you need flood insurance (renters and owners included). Why?

Most insurance policies do not cover any form of flood, which is often defined as rising water entering the home from the outside. What you might not realize is this includes man made causes as well. So say a water main breaks in the street and floods your basement. Your home insurance is not going to pay.

Floods can becaused by droughts. That sounds silly, but the longer an area sits without rain the harder and harder the ground gets, so when it does rain the water does not drain immediately. So what was much needed rain becomes an inch of water in your living room.

Storm surge. Your policy may cover hurricanes, but it most likely does not cover the storm surge.

Sometimes rivers flood, which causes smaller rivers and streams to flood. Just because the small stream that runs right behind your house has never flooded, doesn't mean it couldn't some day.

Ice melts. If you live near mountains or in areas where it snows a lot. Melting snow and ice have been known to cause problems.

Do you own a pool? It's a very real possibility that if it rains for days and days that it could end up a big problem for you.

Ok so I've given you a bunch of reasons why you need it, now let's talk about how to get it.

Depending on your risk class, you will either be preferred or in a risk category. The rates differ for the two.

In most cases it covers structure and belongings.

If you purchase for closing, there is no waiting period, if you wait there is a 30 day waiting period. (This is similar to how you can't get a homeowner's or renter's policy when their is a named storm in the ocean, that is if you live in an area that deals with hurricanes).

Since the program requires renewal from Congress, there are periods that if Congress is fighting over something else, no policies can be written. All the more reason not to delay in getting it.

So really it's a smart idea to get it. And if you live by any body of water, it should be a necessity (some lender's require it). Dealing with a flood is hard enough, but it's far worse when you find out your insurance pays for nothing.

Tuesday, May 17, 2011

You're not supposed to use wire hangers for clothes because they can damage them (I'll admit it, I still use them), but sometimes you end up with many more than you actually need. So what do you do with them? Check-out the list below for some ideas.

Cut it into pieces with a wire cutter, and use it to "staple" a soaker hose into place in the garden

Untwist it and use it to adjust angles on the air vent or use it to retrieve items that have fallen under or behind the refridgerator or other heavy objects (like those socks that fell behind the dryer).

Make it into a giant bubble wand.

Use it to remove static cling. Just rub the long straight side over your skirt to remove static.

Turn it into a shoe hanger by turning the two ends up.

Unlock the door on an older car. (This won't work on most newer cars)

Unclog drains. Untwist the hanger and go fishing around in the drain to pull out an ubstruction.

Make a mobile for a baby's room. (Could be a fun project for an older sibling.)

Use it to make a plate hanger.

Use to make a hanging basket for plants.

Use it to unlock bedrooms doors. (If you have the push lock kind)

Use them for roasting marshmallows or hotdogs over a camp fire or fire pit.

Build a kite with them

Use them to make plant markers for your garden

Lots of arts and crafts including wire Christmas trees and wreaths.

Do you have a use for wire hangers? Share below, and I will add it to the list.

Friday, May 13, 2011

Freecycle is an idea that you can recycle your unwanted goods to someone who might want them. They have a national website, where you can find your local chapter. It's usually run through yahoo groups.

How it works:

A person lists an item they don't want anymore (examples might be a bike with a flat tire, tvs, newspapers, coupons, etc.)

You want it so you contact them via the email they registered with.

If your first, or the person they pick, they'll let you know and you can arrange pick-up.

If you don't get it first, the person will either email you back or ﻿list it as "Taken"

You can also list wanted, but this is discouraged.

What freecycle is not:

A place to get everything you need for free. Yes occasionally really nice things come through, but you shouldn't be posting "wanted Nintendo Wii" or anything like that.

What is it's purpose:

It's really meant for things that would otherwise end up in a landfill. So it may be items that are fixable (like the bike with a flat tire) or are just random like empty wine bottles, but the point is that one man's junk is another's treasure. People also post things that they could donate. Sometimes people just post "bag of clothes this size, one person takes all." You may not want everything in the bag, but that's ok, you can freecycle what you don't want. Sometimes it's a box of misc. homewares. You just never know. Nicer things go quicker, so you'll have to respond right away.

And it's all free. No fee to join, no fee to get anything. So get to freecycling.

Nothing exciting with the actual grocery part, but about 2 minutes after getting there when I had just left the coupon turnstyle, I hear a screech and slam and someone yelling. Thankfully there were firemen in the store, and my husband ran and got them. When leaving the store it appears that someone mistook their brake and gas pedals, jumped the curb hit two parked cars and a person walking with a grocery cart. Hoping no one was seriously hurt. :-/ But I was happy to see many of the Publix employees run to go help (including the manager), and thankful the firemen were in the store at the time.

I thought for a change of pace this week, it would be great to hear from you! So what is your story? How did you get into couponing? If you haven't yet, why not? How long have you been doing it? What do you love the most about it?

Or ask me a question about something that confuses you about couponing? A specific stacking of coupons? How does True BOGO work with a BOGO coupon? No question is dumb, so please feel free to ask!

Wednesday, May 11, 2011

One of the main reasons people give for not storing food is, you guessed it, I don't have anywhere to store it. Last week on I Heart Publix, Michelle asked her readers about organizing and storing a stockpile. Rather than reinvent the wheel, I'm just going to share a link to her post. You can find it here.

Here are some of my suggestions:

Under beds

In the back of closets

On top of cabinets

In guest rooms or offices (Buy a nice cabinet to store it in, if you want).

If you have a climate controlled attic, basement, or garage, you can store them there. Or you can store things that don't need climate control there, like paper goods, razors, toothbrushes, etc.

Under furniture, maybe you have a side table that has a table cloth on it. You could store it under there.

Trip was good overall. Realized I forgot the gift card I had at home, and they only had one bag of the dog food, but I can't complain. I'll just use the gift card toward getting another bag later in the week. The produce guy gave my daughter some fresh cut strawberry, which she loved. That's why I love Publix, their staff is always so friendly.

There has been a lot of speculation about the forthcoming Publix Coupon Policy, but here's the thing: it's best not to believe any of it until it actually comes out. I've seen two posts about it from two major blogs, and in the comments everybody claimed to know someone (or worked at Publix themselves) who heard that the coupon policy had _______ in it. And they varied all over the place to only minor changes (competitor's within a certain mile radius) to huge changes (no competitor's, only one competitor coupon, no overage, limits on coupon amounts, etc.)
Here's what we can expect:

It will make things clearer. Hopefully it will clear up confusion that you have from store to store, or even cashier to cashier.

It will be in writing. This is a good thing really. You can show it to the cashier or manager when there is a problem.

You'll still be able to save a lot. They'll still do BOGO's (which is an automatic 50% savings), and you'll still be able to use manufacturer's coupons saving you more. Really I'm going to bet that unless there is something really crazy in there most people won't see much in relation to their savings percentages.

It will stop abuse. Unfortunately a few bad apples can spoil it for the rest of us. Hopefully with a written coupon policy all cashiers will be knowledgable on what they can and can't accept, and therefore there won't be any problems with people using more coupons then items, fake coupons, unacceptable competitor's (for example warehouse club coupons to by a trial size item, or coupons for a store not even in the same state or neighboring state), etc.

Less poor customer service. While poor customer service is rare at Publix, there are cashiers (and customer service managers, and managers), who feel as though coupon users are "stealing" money from the store. Hopefully with a clear, written policy they won't feel so bad.

It will be fair. They know who their competitor's are, they know what kind of policies are out there (Walmart just released one that was surprisingly lenient in allowing overage!), so they aren't going to want to alienate their shoppers too much. If they make it too difficult to use coupons or harder to save money, people will switch stores. They like people saving money at their store (remember their motto is "Love to Shop Here. Love to Save Here. and they have commercials featuring people printing coupons). More than likely there will be minor changes, but many of us won't see many things far different then how our store currently works.

It won't cover everything. It just can't. All stores have learned that with written policies. There's just no way to make rules that cover everything, so there will still be things that will vary from store to store.

My best advice, until it officially comes out, I wouldn't worry about it too much. However, in the mean time I would certainly voice your opinions to Publix corporate.

What would I like to see?

Doubling coupons in Florida

Penny Item in Florida (a girl can dream right)

Just a written policy in general.

Overage written out as allowed. (After all Walmart does allow it now, which has almost tempted me to go there...)

Limits on number of deals you can purchase. Reasonable to the type of item, obviously, since a limit of 4 yogurts would be awful, but a limit of 4 boxes of the same cereal would be reasonable. However, I think this would be best accomplished in each ad. I dislike shelf-clearers, and this seems like a fair way to deal with it, and thusly stop the store from having a then surplus when the store finally catches up.

A written list of competitor's for each store. I don't care if there is a mile range or not, just that each store has to post who they accept as competitors. It's really frustrating when one week you ask CS and get that a certain store is a competitor and the next it is not, and then a month later it is. Really to me the only competitor's I care about are Target (we have a Super Target), Winn-Dixie, and Sweet Bay. I would also like Save-a-lot too, but I won't complain. They've been really lenient in my area, but really I just care about Target and Winn-Dixie as I rarely get any other competitors.

Wednesday, May 4, 2011

Last week I talked about the need to have a plan, and since then there have been more natural disasters. There always will be disasters, and you can never believe it won't happen to you. One way to be ready is to make sure your kids are also ready, and where they are capable, have them be a part of making the plans and preparations. I mentioned the FEMA site last week, and this week I thought I would share their kids site. You can find it here. It has lots of games and activities to help kids be prepared. Most kids could tell you exactly what to do if the fire alarm goes off at school, but could they tell you what to do if it went off at home? They should, which is why you should be ready.

As a side note, the more your kids are prepared the more they will (most likely) remain calm in an emergency. Remember the more kids have a chance to do something and practice the better they act in time of the actual event. (This is true of adults too). Have mock emergencies, where you act out what you will do. It adds a great piece of mind. Teach them young and often, and you should have no problem at all.